New York State Assemblyman Bob Reilly’s position on MMA influenced by major contributor

Bob Reilly, anti-MMA advocate, whose positions are sold to the highest bidder

Disclaimer: The original title I wrote was “Bob Reilly sells MMA Vote to the Highest Bidder,” which was misleading and unnecessarily inflammatory. After some careful consideration and discussions with others in the comments section, it’s been changed.

UPDATE Friday 5/13/2011 10:11am – Since publishing yesterday, poster “Colonie” and a handful of other mutual friends/acquaintances have reached out to me and assured that Reilly’s position is not based on any assurances or contact with Unite Here or the AFL-CIO.

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State Assemblyman and professional disabled persons impressionist Bob Reilly’s blockage and opposition to regulated Mixed Martial Arts in New York State is getting more nonsensical as the real reasons behind it become clearer.

Reilly recently spoke with Ariel Helwani of MMAFighting.com (a subsidiary of AOL Time Warner) regarding the new pre-fight insurance policy instituted by Zuffa, parent company of the UFC and the recently acquired San Jose-based Strikeforce promotion.

The new insurance policy would provide coverage for fighters that get injured while training for a fight. Zuffa, who had shopped for a company willing to provide coverage for over a year and a half, already covered fighters who were injured during the course of a fight itself.

Reilly found the timing of the policy suspect, and was critical even while praising the company for its efforts. From the article:

“I think what MMA should be doing is, instead of providing insurance for injuries, is to do away with injuries.”

When I explained to Reilly that the UFC fighters were already covered for injuries suffered in fights and the new insurance would cover injuries, suffered in or outside of the gym, while training or not for an upcoming fight, Reilly added:

“It’s certainly not a bad thing that they provide this insurance, but it really does little or nothing to solve the problem of what will happen to fighters financially, of the physical damage done to fighters or the fact that this violent sport begets violence in our society. So it does nothing to address the systemic problems of MMA.

“I think it’s a positive thing, but I don’t think it’s a positive step. In the sense that it doesn’t address the systemic problems of MMA. But it’s certainly not a negative thing.”

Reilly’s opposition is pathological, which is nothing new. The only consistency in his arguments have been his method: he’ll cite a reason for not legalizing it, then when his claims are refuted by facts, he backtracks and makes up completely new reasons. It’s maddening, but hey, that’s politics, right?

Except Reilly’s nonsensical blathering and stubborn opposition works to the detriment of New York State. MMA could bring in revenue for the State, with advocates conceding a proposed and unprecedented 8.5% tax on the gate of MMA events (boxing promotions only have to pay 3%). New York is one of only two in the entire country that hasn’t legalized MMA and is the only one with an Athletic Commission. In addition to revenue lost from major shows occurring in nearby New Jersey, estimates are that at least 70 smaller, regional shows a year (overseen by Athletic Commission regulations) would occur if the sport were legalized.

If it seems like MMA opponents like Reilly have an ulterior motive, it’s because they do.

Various sources have confirmed that the source of the blockage is a dispute between UNITE HERE, which is the parent organization a local culinary union in Las Vegas, and Zuffa owners the Fertitta brothers. The Fertittas also own Station Casinos, which are the only casinos in Las Vegas that do not have a contract with Culinary Union Local 226. Helwani, who interviewed Reilly, earlier this week uncovered a memo from UNITE HERE member the New York Hotel Trades Council outlining their opposition to MMA.

In short: MMA is being blocked because of an out-of-state labor dispute.

As for Bob Reilly? UNITE HERE has been a consistent contributor to his campaigns, the State Democratic Election Committee, the Democratic State Assembly Committee, Working Families, Inc., and in 2006 were Reilly’s second largest individual contributor.

So New York State, which more than ever needs new forms of revenue, is having a major one – almost a no-brainer – blocked because of politicians like Reilly, who sell their votes to the highest bidder. Out-of-state interests trump our State’s financial situation, if the price is right.

UPDATE 8:40pm – from the comments section:

Stephen Koepfer: Kevin, assuming this is all MMA directed lobby cash by Unite Here is a big stretch, but, let’s assume it is. What have they done done since 2008. It is 2011. Where is your evidence that they are still any kind of significant barrier in NY?

Stephen & others: this is the problem with giving me a blog and having me write blog posts during my breaks at work. Sometimes I can get carried away with my word usage, and it can be – albeit unintentionally – misread and misleading. That’s my bad, and on issues such as this I should definitely exercise more caution.

I want to make it clear though: I’m not saying it’s cash that’s given to a campaign and said “hey, here’s X thousands of dollars, don’t vote for MMA.” I am saying that Unite Here specifically has a vested interest in keeping this from the vote, and they have a champion in Bob Reilly, for whom they are a major contributor. No single organization throws that much money at a candidate for a single issue, but when they do have so much invested and such a significant portion in a candidate, they do have sway on issues that concern them.

My point isn’t that UNITE HERE paid Bob Reilly specifically to say no to MMA, but that UNITE HERE has a lot of pull with Reilly due to their significant contributions, and as such may have had a significant influence on his position.

But that’s a good question. Where HAVE they been since 2008? I wondered myself and did some digging.

In 2005 UNITE HERE created a big shake-up when they split from the AFL-CIO and joined the Change to Win Federation. After many years of doing a lot of their own lobbying and money-spending, they mended fences and re-affiliated themselves with the AFL-CIO in September 2009. Whereas in 2008 UNITE HERE in its various forms (Unite Here Tip State & Local Fund, Unite Here Tip Campaign Committee, Unite Here State & Local Fund among others) spent over $4 million on New York State campaigns, in 2010 their contributions dipped significantly: a little over $1.6 million. A lot of that money that used to come from UNITE HERE was now coming through the AFL-CIO.

Reilly was involved in a tight race in the Fall of 2010, where he was re-elected to his fourth term by a mere 542 votes. In October and November, with Reilly losing ground, the State Democratic Committee increased its fundraising efforts and the money flowed in with renewed vigor for that and other races. In those two months, the New York State AFL-CIO Cope Fund contributed a total of $31,000 to The New York State Democratic Assembly Campaign Committee. Guess how much the New York State Democratic Assembly Campaign Committee donated to Friends of Bob Reilly in those two months?